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Author Notes:This is the result of my crazy idea to just mash guacamole ingredients into quinoa (or rice, or barley, or pretty much any grain), and it turned out really well. The instructions are three short sentences -- it's SO simple. It's perfect as a portable side dish, because it can easily be doubled or tripled for a large batch to take to a party, and can be served warm, room temperature, or cold. Additionally, against all odds, it stays bright green for 3 days in the fridge! —foxeslovelemons

Food52 Review: This recipe was a twofer for me: the first day it had the character of an avocado quinoa salad, and as such was tasty and delightful. The second day, though, was when the guacamole kicked in The flavors had a chance to meld, the avocado softened the quinoa, and we really had a guacamole on our hands. It was delicious both ways and I could see using it both as a salad and as a dip, depending on the schedule. Definitely a great one to take along to a picnic or a potluck. I did tinker slightly with the proportions: 3 cups of quinoa cried out for more than one avocado, or maybe we had extra small ones. This is a dish that I will make again. —lmikkel

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Serves 4

1
ripe avocado, pitted, peeled, and diced

Juice of 1 1/2 limes

1/4
teaspoon kosher salt

3
cups cooked quinoa

1
garlic clove, crushed with a press or minced and ground into a paste

1
Roma tomato, diced

1/2
jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced (I only add SOME of the seeds to the dish. Do as you please).

1/4
cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/4
cup diced red onion

1/4
teaspoon ground cumin

1/2
teaspoon cayenne

In a medium bowl, mash together avocado, lime juice, and salt. Add remaining ingredients, then toss to combine well. Serve warm or cold.

This was terrific. Thank you! I added the garlic to the quinoa while cooking, as I don't like the raw garlic taste, used an extra 1/2 avocado and upped the chopped cilantro to 1/2 cup. Put the chopped onions in the cooked quinoa while it was cooling. Next time I would taste the lime juice before putting it all in, as it was a bit too much for me. Would also add an extra clove of garlic since I essentially cook it with the quinoa. Delicious over dressed chopped romaine and an addition of black beans.

I just made this for lunch today and it was great! I'm glad I have extras for lunch tomorrow too! I ate it with a side of blue tortilla chips to add a bit of crunch and extra salt. Very delicious. Thank for sharing a fun way to mix it up with quinoa. A great summer recipe! Cheers from Australia

This was great! mine stayed green for 5 days and tasted great each day. I doubled the avocado but it wasn't "dippy" which was great. I'll be making a triple batch this weekend for a family BBQ. Great recipe!

Delicious and nutritious! For a party I changed it into more of a dip by doubling the guacamole part and halving the quinoa. With sturdy tortilla chips (or super salty potato chips for some) in hand, guests just stood around dipping directly from the bowl; a sure sign of success!

Just a thought on it staying green… I worked at a Mexican restaurant. We would put plastic wrap DIRECTLY TOUCHING the guac. Shields it from oxygen and keeps it green. Also, citric acid from lime or lemon helps.